Checkout counters are widely used in certain types of retail establishments, such as supermarkets and in stores of certain mass merchandisers. A typical checkout counter includes a cash register and a conveyor belt for merchandise to be purchased. Articles to be purchased are loaded, usually by customers, on the conveyor belt and transported from a position remote from the cash register toward a cash register operator. During busier times, while an order of a first customer is being processed by the cash register operator, another order is loaded on the conveyor belt at a position remote from the operator and cash register. Frequently, more than one order is loaded onto the conveyor belt by two or more customers, while the first customer is being "checked out." To distinguish the orders of different customers, an order divider bar, located in proximity to the conveyor belt, is inserted by the customers between the items forming the different orders. After a customer has been checked out, the divider bar is returned, usually by the checkout counter operator, toward the rear of a track adjacent the conveyor belt, so that the next customer can reach the divider bar.
In my prior co-pending patent application, Ser. No. 08/385,518, filed Feb. 2, 1995, entitled CHECKOUT COUNTER ORDER DIVIDER INCLUDING MERCHANDISE TO BE PURCHASED now U.S. Pat. No. 5,450,926, the contents of which is hereby incorporated by reference, there is disclosed an order divider including merchandise that can be bought by the customer. The merchandise or an advertisement for it can be seen by the customer.
In other types of retail establishments, where customers typically shop for smaller orders than at supermarkets, there is no need for conveyor belts. Often, a simple counter is used, and the customer stands near the counter and places the order on the counter in the vicinity of a checkout counter operator.
A conveyor belt for a grocery store counter is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,358,084, issued on Oct. 25, 1994 to Molinaro for "Conveyor Belt With Advertisements." Vinyl sheets made of a static cling material having advertising indicia imprinted thereon adhere to a conveyor belt top surface by electrostatic cling. In one embodiment, strips of a releasable adhesive material, preferably located at a leading edge of the vinyl sheet, secure the vinyl sheets to the conveyor belt. In another embodiment, the surface of the vinyl sheet is treated with a slip agent to prevent merchandise from adhering to the vinyl sheets.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,979,591 issued on Dec. 25, 1990 to Habegger et al. for "Conveyor Belt," advertising indicia are imprinted directly on a visible outer surface of a conveyor belt, whereupon the conveyor belt is coated with a clear layer of protective plastic material.
Another prior art conveyor belt containing advertising indicia is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,165,526, issued on Nov. 24, 1992 to Conklin, Jr. for "Conveyor System with Panels Containing Visual Information." A conveyor belt, preferably a baggage carousel, includes a plurality of transparent panels, each having a thin layer containing visual information affixed to its bottom surface. To enhance the visibility of the panels, back lighting is used, resulting in an increased intensity to the colors.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved method of and apparatus for facilitating and encouraging purchase of items at a checkout counter.
An additional object of the invention is to provide a new and improved checkout counter, wherein an advertisement is displayed on the counter.
An additional object of the invention is to provide a new and improved checkout counter, wherein the counter includes a structure for signalling that items therein are to be purchased.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved conveyor belt-type checkout counter, wherein an advertisement is displayed on the counter and viewed through the conveyor belt.